Media Meditation #6 Is She Real?

After sitting through the holiday commercials (and the bad Black Friday commercials) for the past week I have started to really think about Hollywood image. In one of my other classes we discussed how Hollywood has skewed the perception of how a woman should look. With all the hype of America’s obesity problem, weight has become something constantly dwelled on. Many American women compare themselves with the models and Hollywood icons that show up in fashion magazines. Most women find themselves completely out of the “norm” when they compare themselves to the plastic faces and bodies marketers throw at consumers.

One of the videos shown to our class really points out how the finished picture of a model is usually completely different than the start of the photo shoot. In a very short time this video shows how our perception of what we consider beautiful is completely fabricated.

With the vast use of strategic cameras and angles, lighting, makeup and Photoshop, the end result usually is completely altered and unreal. Have you ever wondered what Angelina Jolie looks like without a pound of makeup on? Yet most of us are deceived by the glamour of the glossy pages and believe that is real and that is what real beauty is. When women compare themselves to these plastic images, they naturally find themselves unequal.

My mother and I were discussing body type one night as we were watching Wheel of Fortune. Most people know and love Vanna White. An ageless beauty, she has been a beautiful addition to the show for many years. When we were young, my brother used to say he wanted to marry her. However, if you really study her body type, she has no definition.
If TV adds 15 pounds to your image, she must be anorexic to still look as thin as she is. She has no muscle definition in her arms; they are the same shape all the way down. As with most other stars, when you really start to look at their image, piece by piece, most of them are not beautiful, but skinny and unhealthy. I believe that obesity is a problem, especially when it affects your health. However I also believe that America doesn’t focus on the other end of the spectrum, opting to delude young women into a warped mental image of what their body should look like.